The Chosen Ideal

[sophia_dione]

The Chosen Ideal
Sophia-Dione 23
Coven Quiddity

Presented as an illustrated Power Point Slide Presentation on March 1, 2009

Chosen Ideal = Ishta devata 
The term Chosen Ideal is a popular translation of the Sanskrit word Ishta devata, which basically means “favorite deity.” The chosen ideal is important in Hindu spiritual practice (sadhana) and is,

Comments

[aethyrflux]

Although i have been working with ritual theater in one form or another for decades, i have recently had a number of encounters that have caused me to reconsider some of my old wisdom in a new light.

Particularly, i have been questioning how people benefit from teacher-student relationships (rather than each going directly to the cosmic source for wisdom), and this contemplation has sparked a renewed relationship with my own chosen ideal.

For instance, in the first of the Andrea McCain episodes of the experimental witch videos, Andrea speaks of her distrust for her own particular lineage, as well as teachers of sacred mysteries in general. This is the sort of experience that has led me back to refining my own personal chosen ideal... it's certainly a work in progress and I stumbled across your excellently researched & thoughtfully composed essay while researching these ideas, so I thought I would compare some notes, so to speak ;~})>

Here's a curious exegesis of the origins of the HGA & the Agathos-Daemon

& Pope Pete penned a

[sophia_dione]

Much thanks for you interest and thoughtful and candid comments. Especially thank you for those links. Tell me more (perhaps PM me) about those Andrea McCain episodes. I, too, can very much relate to the sentiments in the prologue of the link. A teacher is someone who leads you to your own truth, efficiency, and efficacy, not his/her own, but who has enough juice and experience to protect and guide you on your own journey. It's a tricky business. This is a meaning of "guru"--one who leads you from darkness (gu-a Sanskrit root for words like "hidden," "dark," "enclosed") to light (ru--Sanskrit root for words related to the sun, light, growth, and protection

[aethyrflux]

Oh, perhaps I should get around to posting the rant that I started in December about gurus, teachers & coaches... your etymology of the word guru is inspiring 8-)

Bizarrely enough, I was researching alternative economic models, new media, & game development concepts, and I came across The Whuffie Bank... perusing the top ten people in their reputation-based economy, I noticed Paulo Coelho and realized that I still hadn't read any of his work... so I started reading The Witch of Portobello Road & watching The Experimental Witch Videos. Paulo says this page explains it best.

I am generally skeptical of any being that I encounter at first, but as I begin to see patterns & archetypal behaviours, I am willing to begin to trust entities to be who they are... and I am always excited to share my research with colleagues ;~})> I do appreciate hearing how people's rituals & relationships work for them!

I suspected you would appreciate the historical perspective... which reminds me, I think you would get along famously with my friend HelixAs

[anonymous]

Re: seo tools

[sophia_dione]

Thank you. Coven Quiddity has long disbanded but I put together some interesting slide presentations for it, some of which have ended up in the early pages of this blog.